A recent chance discovery of a quantum material can have far-reaching implications in quantum computing and superfast data transmission.

Brewing a mixture of manganese and tin in quartz tubes, followed by gradual cooling, led to a mixture of compounds that may possibly be able to host small and energy-efficient information cells. These information cells have the potential to develop high-density, low-power, and multi-functional devices for memory and logic applications.

Researcher Achintya Low of the SN Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Kolkata, brewed a mixture of manganese and tin powder in 7:3 proportion, sealed it in an evacuated quartz tube at 1,000 degrees C for 24 hours, and cooled the mixture very slowly.

When sufficiently cooled, the quartz tubes were transferred to a centrifuge to separate the crystals from the residue. The crystals were tiny but visible to the naked eye. The chemical composition of these crystals was supposed to be three manganese atoms to one tin atom per unit cell.

‘Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy’ showed that some crystals had a ‘defect’ — instead of three manganese atoms, they had 2.8 or 2.65 manganese atoms to one tin atom per unit cell.

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The researchers suggested that the crystals with 2.8 manganese atoms per unit cell were highly likely to host magnetic skyrmions — the small and energy-efficient information cells that have the potential to develop high-density, low-power, and multi-functional devices for memory and logic applications.

Memory devices built with skyrmions are likely to replace hard disc devices because of their reliable mechanical stability, faster addressing time, and higher storage density. Thus the crystals with 2.8 manganese atoms per unit cell will find application in quantum computing and superfast data transmission, says a press release.

Portable uric acid detector

A new flexible bio-electronic uric acid detecting device has been fabricated for various applications such as wearable sensors and point-of-care diagnostics.

Uric acid is one of the most important antioxidants that maintain blood pressure stability and reduce oxidative stress in living beings.

The usual range of uric acid in blood is 0.14-0.4 millimole per cubic decimetre, and for urine 1.5-4.5 millimole per cubic decimetre.

However, fluctuating uric acid levels due to lack of balance between its production and excretion cause diseases like hyperuricemia, which in turn may lead to gout disease, type 2 diabetes, increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, Lesch–Nyhan syndrome, hypertension, and renal disorders.

Researchers at the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST) fabricated a device made of reduced phosphorene quantum dots — a new class of zero-dimensional functional nanostructures with unique physicochemical and surface properties. The quantum dots show distinctive electrical performance in biomedical applications and can be used in fabricating high-performance electrical biosensors.

The fabricated device shows reversibility in interaction with uric acid, which enables repeat use of the device for sensing experiments. It outperforms all currently available devices in effectiveness and cost because it doesn’t need any enzymes.

The response of the fabricated device was investigated with samples like human blood serum and artificial urine. The device is simple, portable, cost-effective, and easy to fabricate for detecting uric acid, says a press release.

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